Sunday, October 30

Attention Dog Lovers! It's time for Weekend Dog Blogging!If you'd like to see more fun dog photos and discover yummy new food blogs, head over to Sweetnicks on Sunday night for the complete roundup and links to this week's participants. We'd love to have you join us. Just post your pup and e-mail the permalink to Sweetnicks.

Special Additions! Click here to see the Wild Party Crasher!Click here to see the lovely but shy Miss Domino, our Farmgirl Fare Foster Blog Cat.

Attention Cat Lovers! It's time for Weekend Cat Blogging #21: Kiri's Birthday Celebration!Yep, that wild and crazy cat from Down Under is turning one, and Clare is having a party. Just click here to head over to Eat Stuff, where you'll find all the links to this week's party cats. We'd love to have you join us for Weekend Cat Blogging. Just send your permalink in a comment to Clare (Kiri's slave) at Eat Stuff and add a "Weekend Cat Blogging" tag to your post.

That's right--nobody guessed correctly. This is what I bought last Thursday night at the Livestock Auction Barn. Two llamas! (Click here to read about my night at the auction. Clickhere if you missed the auction photos.) And no, the auctioneer didn't actually say "Sold to the little lady in the overalls!" when I ended up as the high bidder--he called me by name instead. I do live in the house he grew up in, after all.

The handsome devil on the left is a male, and the cutie pie on his right is a female. Yes, a breeding pair. Other than that, I really don't know much about them (which is often how it is when you buy something at auction). I do know that considering these two have had a tumultuous past couple of days, they appear to be settling into their new home quite well. They survived their first frosty night here, have already scoped out every inch of their large pen, and are showing a keen interest in everything and everyone around them.

Everyone around them, on the other hand, is not quite sure what to think. Robin, who spent several years living with the llama I used to have, has completely forgotten that she loves llamas--it's cows she hates. Bear, who loves every living thing but also believes they all need herding, has already received a perfectly aimed kick in the head for his rather aggressive efforts (he's fine). Uncle Dan (who hurt his front leg last week but is completely recovered) just stood staring at them, dumbfounded, then let out a small cry and suddenly redeveloped his limp. Last night the sheep took a very long detour back to their barn in order to avoid passing by the llama pen, and a little while ago I spotted them huddled tightly together, all eyes pointedly fixed on the intruders--from a safe distance of several hundred feet away. (My four older ewes are the only ones who lived with my previous llama.)

Joe and I, meanwhile, are absolutely thrilled that they are here, and I'm sure that in time they will succeed in making friends with everyone--even jealous Dan. The plan is for the llamas to run with the sheep, guarding them and keeping the flock together while they are grazing, instead of widely scattered about as they have been lately.

Of course, the other part of the plan includes a baby llama.

Llamas are wonderful, unique creatures. These two newcomers will no doubt be making regular appearances here as the stories unfold and we all get to know each other better. In the meantime, here are two more photos of them for you to enjoy.

Friday, October 28

Every day it becomes a little more difficult to scratch out a living as a small farmer in rural America. Let's just say there's not a lot working in our favor. And for every farmer who (either by force or by choice) gives up, it isn't only a farm that dies. Entire communities—from the feed dealer to the bank owner—are dependent upon the success of local small farmers. And t mhose of us who do stick it out pretty much all must rely on some sort of off-farm income.

A difficult, honest, and incredibly rewarding way of living is teetering on the brink of extinction.

Monday, October 24

Sunday, October 23

Are You Smiling Yet?Attention Dog Lovers! It's time for Weekend Dog Blogging! If you'd like to see more fun dog photos and discover yummy new food blogs, head over to Sweetnickson Sunday night for the complete roundup and links to this week's participants. We'd love to have you join us. Just post your pup and e-mail the permalink to Sweetnicks.

Friday, October 21

*Note: In an effort to keep this post a manageable length, I chose to include links to many of the comments and entries that are mentioned, rather than put them in here. So you can read just what you see, or you can click on the links for the lengthier (and much livelier) version. What? You want to skip right to the end? Uh, yeah sure, go ahead. Just promise me you'll come back and read the whole thing, okay? It took me forever to put this together.

After three weeks, more than 250 comments (on 70 printed pages), over 150 names entered, and enough laughing to burn off at least 400 chocolate babycakes (and that's just on my part), our lovely Yellow 21 has a brand new name.

Thanks so much to everyone who participated in the Farmgirl Fare First Ever Name That Sheep Contest (which even managed to receive international notoriety. ) I am overwhelmed by your amazing response, your marvelous creativity, and your non-stop enthusiasm (click here to read the 40+ zany comments that were left yesterday alone. And don't forget to click on the names of the commenters to find out who some of them really are.) Everyone was an exceptionally good sport throughout the contest (though we did have one mild threat from Shauna regardingCookiecrumb's entry of "Girl.")

I have had more fun than I ever imagined--and the Secret Panel Of Judges had one heck of a time choosing a winner. We were tempted to take Cherrybegonia's advice and "name this sheep Grace because only by the the grace of God are you not going to give up and just keep Yellow 21!" And that was 40 pages of comments ago. Then there was Kitchen Mage's suggestion that we "declare Larb [her entry] to be of a culture where everyone gets 1000 names and dub her Larb Butterbean Muffaletta Pepper Coriander Matzo Ball Pecorino Pepato Clementine Kiwi Meringue Cashew Skittles Fluffernutter Sugarlump Marzipan Cupcake Chocolat Mocha Cappucino. As long as Larb is first."

But we perservered. And while you can rest assured that all judging was done on the up and up, there were definitely some tempting offers. This lovely lunch arrived via e-mail from hopeful contestant Kat. Kitchen Mage, in her quest to make "Little Larblet" her own, put all her heart into baking some special bread in Yellow 21's honor. And Heather revealed a secret family recipe in hopes of swaying the judges toward the name Willow. But the most tempting offer of all had to be the one from Mathilde, who suggested some interesting Danish names and then added that she "would SO love to see the face of my boyfriend telling him I won a live sheep. He will be afraid she will have to live with me and the cat in too little space and he will turn all green in the face. I will promise you a picture of this if I win!".

But as I said, the judges did not receive any actual bribes. (Pssst!Nic! Your package never arrived.) So on with the contest. The variety of names entered was simply astounding. And it was certainly interesting to be allowed a look at just how some of your minds work (likeAnna's, which came up with this entry, and Amy's, which came up withthis one. And then there was Geekwif's first choice: Hot Rod Mama.)

Because you are probably curious (and at the risk of hurting the feelings of other entrants--as Brett suggested, we really should declare "a hundred way tie for second place."), here are some of the names that made it through the first rounds of judging. They are (in no particular order): Kiwi, Willow (or Woolow, as one the of judges preferred), Gemma, Emma, Missy, Matilda, Ewegenie, Chloe, Hannah, Estella, Darla, Fiona, Philomena, Tallulah, Lottie Lou, Mrs. MacTavish, Patience, and Grace.

Once we had a list of finalists, our job became even harder. And while Yellow 21 has only one new name, the judges would like to call attention to a few contestants who, each in their own (sometimes slightly demented) way, rose above the throngs of other players and outdid themselves in their efforts to win themselves a sheep.

Let's start withAlisha. She didn't enter right away, as she wanted to wait until she came up with the perfect name. And she did. It was Lydia. Which Karl had entered on the first day of the contest. Aghast at what she had inadvertantly done, she came back with an entirely different idea, a rather convoluted (and slightly frantic) explanation to go with it--and no new entry.That's right, for Alisha was willing to win only half a sheep as long as she knew it had the right name. We had to admire her for that.

Then we have Tana, who jumped right in, happy to show off her knowledge of sheep breeds (but who, despite the fact that she spends much of her days visiting small farms, still doesn't know what noise a sheep makes.) Tana submitted the name Rita Merino, and although I did publicly disclose Yellow 21's backgroundhere, specifically mentioning (for Tana's benefit) that Yellow 21 is not even 1% merino, she stuck by her name, popping by now and again to defend it when necessary. This was usually just when you thought she'd given up the fight--like last night at 5:44pm when a comment appeared out of nowhere saying, simply: "Ahem. Please click here!"

Next we have Lindy, who entered just one name: "Muffaletta, after the sandwich." And who came back several times to defend her entry and point out its many virtues. (We do have to agree, Lindy--it somehow actually does sound wooly.)But when it started to look as though Yellow 21 might never become a sandwich, Lindy put in a shameless appeal for the sympathy vote with this story. (Wait, you gotta go back and read the story first.)

And then there is Jeff, who lurks in the background at Culinary In The Desert, feasting on Joe's gourmet cooking and no doubt keeping the entire household in a constant state of hysterics. Jeff entered several names, but when he learned that one judge was getting a real kick out of his very first entry, Cashew, ("If you are raising her for any sort of profit-reasons....Cashew. As in...Cash-Ewe Hee hee hee!") he took the hint and ran like hell with it. At one point he even started channeling sheep. It's going to be awfully quiet around here without Jeff'switty comments peppering nearly every single post that I've put up since this contest began. He definitely outdid himself with this one.

And that brings us to The Final Three. You probably know who they are. Sam.Lisolette. Wendy. There is no way I can even begin to rekindle the competitive (and absolutely hilarious) fire that was burning here this past week--and these three were definitely the ones most responsible for fanning the flames. If you haven't been following along with the contest, I can only urge you to go back and read the comments section of the original post, especially the second half of them. Now I'll do my best to give these girls the credit they deserve.

Wendy was our latecomer, joining in the game just last week, but oh how she made up for it. She entered over 30 different names, starting with Mushmello. Then she really got on the ball--and just kept rolling. She also had me (and I'm sure many other people) rolling on the floor in fits of laughter with her wacky comments. (Don't believe me? Just try saying "Cream of Sheep" out loud with a straight face.) Wendy says she works as a barmaid, and, well, one can't help but wonder. . .

Meanwhile, there was Sam. Sam, who entered just one name: Guinevere ("aptly meaning 'fair and soft'"). Sam, whofaked technical difficultieson her own blog,Becks & Posh, so she could devote more time to the contest. And she has played fair alright, but she has been anything but soft on the competition. Last week I was absolutely thrilled when I saw that there had been a record number of visitors to Farmgirl Fare--and that the previous daily high had been broken by several hundred hits. Then I discovered the truth. There were no hundreds of new readers--it was just Sam, checking in every six minutes in the hopes of finding a newly entered name to bash.

And when Liselotte first joined in by entering the name Karen, Sam was right there, ready to pounce on it. When Liselotte came back to check on her name, she saw that I had explained how I once had a sheep named Karen. She also noticed that I mentioned how I liked the name Liselotte and wondered why she hadn't entered it.And so she did.

Three finalists and five strong competitors. But, of course, there can only be one Big Winner. And while we thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated Wendy's wit and humor and enthusiasm, there was no denying that her final entry was, well, Marzipan Cream of Sheep. Just not quite up to par with Liselotte and Guinevere.

What to do? What to do? How to reward seven deserving players without dividing up Yellow 21 into little bits? And then it came to us.

This contest was created because it can take a while to get a name around here. In fact, there are a few other sheep roaming around without proper names--including some that were born this year and last, and thus need names that begin with an 'A' or a 'B.' (So that it would be easier for us to remember which lambs were born when, last year we decided to give all the female lambs born that year names starting with an 'A.' And this year we gave them 'B' names. That was the simple reason why no 'A' or 'B' names were allowed in the contest.)

In a flash of brilliance, we realized that we could celebrate some very deserving people--and get a few more sheep named at the same time. And so without further ado, I would like to introduce you to

Alisha! This cutie pie was born in 2004 to Doll Face, and previously known only as Green 33. Congratulations, Alisha (the person)! You have received a Special Judges Award!

Next, please meet the newly named

Brett!Brett (the person), you have been named Best Basher! Little Brett was born this spring to Auntie Rose and used to be called Green 43--though she chose to remove her eartag. Clickhere to see another picture of her.

Moving on, we come to a slightly older sheep. Poor Yellow 24 has spent over two years without a real name. Until now. Introducing

Taaaaanaaaaa! Congratulations Tana (the person), you have received a Special Judges Award! (Tana the sheep is a little camera shy, but we did manage to snap this picture of her as well.)

And then we have Lindy. Lindy, who knows so well that somebody has to be the fifth place winner. Lindy, you too have received a Special Judges Award. Congratulations! Now please say hello to this formerly nameless beauty,

Lindy The Chicken!

Up next is Jeff. Jeff who, even as I sit typing this, is still leaving witty comments on other Farmgirl Fare posts. What can we say? This contest just would not have been the same without nuts. Congratulations Jeff, you have been given the Laugh Out Loud Award! And, if all goes well, five months from yesterday (how's that for perfect timing?) Yellow 21 will give birth to little Cashew! And if it's a boy? Well, then it'll just be Cash. . .

And Wendy. Wendy, who, in the spirit of competition, even eartagged her husband. She really put her all into the contest, but you have to admit that many of her comments were pretty silly. But in a good way. In the same way that this pretty lady was named Silly back in 2002 when she was born to Doll Face. She has always liked her name, but she was absolutely tickled to find out that from now on she is going to be known as

Silly Wendy!Congratulations Wendy, you have been given the Artistic Genius Or Borderline Psychotic? Award! (Please click here to see Silly Wendy in a more refined pose.)

And that leaves us with Sam and Liselotte. To say this was a close call would be making a huge understatement. If this had been a horse race, it would definitely need a photo finish and a magnifying glass. Both players fought to the very end with unstoppable wit and charm and humor--and stamina. Both entered excellent names, and, really, both deserved to win.

But, once again, Yellow 21 can only have one new name. The judges were stumped. We even put the question to Yellow 21 herself, though we did not expect any help since up to this point she had not responded in the slightest to any of the names we had called her: not to Snorf, not to Tallulah, not to Patience, not even to Marzipan Cream Of Sheep. Nothing. Not a twitch. So what happened when we called out the final two names to her? Well naturally she answered to both of them.

It was back to us. We thought long and hard, and we finally figured it out. What does it all come down to in the end? Not who bakes the best cupcakes. Not who you know in high places. No, what it all comes down to in the end is Love. And while we can only assume that Sam was planning to love Yellow 21 with all of her heart, she never actually came out and said it.And Liselotte did.

Sam, we present to you the MVP Award for Most Vigilant Player. And we hope that you will be pleased to know that in 2010, when we reach the 'G' names, the softest and fairest of all the female lambs will most definitely be called Guinevere. In the meantime, it gives me great pleasure to introduce you to

Becks. . .

And Posh!

Yes, we realize Becks has food all over her chin, but as a diehard foodie we figured that Sam would understand. Becks (who used to be called Green 42) was born this spring to Trixie, a triplet whose mother is Mary (Doll Face's triplet sister). Click here to see another picture of Becks.

And Posh (formerly known as Green 32) was born in 2004 to Clare, one of our oldest and dearest sheep. Click here to see another picture of And Posh.

Phew. That means all we have left to do is say Goodbye Yellow 21. . .

And Hello Liselotte!

Congratulations to you both!

And now I do believe it's time for some champagne. Thank you all so much for playing (and for your patience). This contest has truly been one of the most memorable events in my life. (No, I'm not crying. There's something in my eye. Yes, in that one, too.)

Yo! What in the world is taking so long? Hel-lo? We're being seriously neglected over here!

Okay, so not everyone is anxiously awaiting the announcement of Yellow 21's new name. But many of you are, as evidenced by the flurry of zany comments that came in yesterday while I was attempting to type up the final contest post. If you're looking for something to occupy your time until the Big Moment, click here to read them. And be sure to click on the names of the commenters to find out just who (or what) was visiting the farm. It was quite a day.

Oh, and don't worry Vickie; you weren't the only one who was impersonated yesterday. It was all done in good fun, I'm sure. But of course I would never point fingersat anyone.

Thursday, October 20

Please accept my sincere apologies. I'm afraid that Yellow 21 is going to have to wait just a little bit longer for her new name. Thanks so much for your patience and understanding. Please check back tomorrow to find out who the lucky winner is!

The storm has passed and everything is still up and running. Just one little glitch: a few moments ago my entire post, except for the first couple of sentences, vanished from the face of the blogosphere. It's going to take me a little while to reconstruct. Thanks for your patience.

I'm sure everything will be fine, but I felt I should warn you (while I can still get online) that we are in the middle of a fierce thunderstorm--and you know what that can mean.

I am typing as fast as I can and hope to announce the winner of the Name That Sheep contest later tonight. Until then, please keep hooves and fingers crossed that the power and phone don't get knocked out. (Already blogger is doing some very strange things--like making entire freshly typed posts disappear.) Thanks for your patience and understanding. Now please excuse me while I check on Dan and round up some very soggy sheepsies.

P.S. No, this is not a 'fake' emergency I invented just to buy myself some more time. Though I may have to resort to that later. There have been an incredible number of interruptions today. . .